<p>I second (or third) everything others have already said. We visited last spring and I nervously waited until Allison came through with a very detailed itinerary at 1:30 PM the day before we left for the airport. While I’m sure things sometimes fall through the cracks, UA is by far the most organized and responsive school I’ve ever seen (or even heard of)!</p>
<p>I went to all of the meetings with DS (no classes since it was spring break), but then I knew he not only wouldn’t mind but actually prefer for me to ask the questions. I would just ask your child and follow his/her lead. If you have some questions that you really want to have answered, give him/her a list beforehand.</p>
<p>(And yes, it’s pathetic that I still visit this forum even though DS has chosen to break my heart and go to Virginia Tech. :{ What can I say? Living vicariously through all of you is all I have left, LOL! )</p>
<p>I’d like to clarify my previous post to say that we did not sit in on a class with our son. Son did not sit in on a class - probably because we visited on a Friday before an away football game and most of the campus was away. Had my son had the opportunity to sit in on class, we would have skipped that. My son would have strongly preferred for us to be away from him - away like in another county - in that situation</p>
<p>We also got our schedule the day before the visit and everything was great. The students Allison arranged to meet with my D were warm, friendly, and loved the school and the honors program. I was with D about half the time but had her go to lunch without me. She had a nice lunch with a student from Texas and I think enjoyed the one on one time. Allison is a sweetheart and a wonderful ambassador for UA!</p>
<p>Getting the schedule at the last minute is stressful, but this is not solely a Bama issue. My son had this issue at 2 other schools as well.</p>
<p>After that, I learned to just call or e-mail the school we were visiting a few days before and request they verify our start time/where to report and the estimated end time. </p>
<p>My issue was that I simply wanted verification we were on the schedule.</p>
<p>Just wanted to check back in and say that we got our schedule as we were en route, and it all worked out fine. After a quick meeting with the bio prof, we started the day with a general group tour, and we were unimpressed. At that point, S said “no” to a t-shirt (code for, “I don’t like this school, so don’t bother.”) when we were browsing the bookstore as we killed time waiting for his lunch with an Honors student. He enjoyed lunch with the student (I stayed only briefly, and was actually unimpressed with the student.) and then was wowed by the Honors dorm. We met with the Dean of the Honors college at the end of the day, and she pretty much sealed the deal for him. He walked out of there saying he wanted to apply to the CBHP (which was of no interest to him previously) and that, “It’s nice to be wanted!” I then overheard him telling DH that UA isn’t just a safety, it’s a contender. And we went back and bought a tshirt after dinner. ;)</p>
<p>Collegefortwins: Glad that your son is interested in CBHP. My son will graduate in 13 days (yes, the countdown is on!), and he loved his time in CBHP – and not because he won awards in the program, either. He enjoyed his research experience with an economics professor, and the skills he gained will make him more marketable. The Honors dorm was the thing that clinched it for my son – his own bedroom for four years. That is on the priority list for my younger son, who also has Alabama as his No. 1 school. He would love his own room and does not mind cleaning the bathroom – he does that at home.</p>
<p>momreads, as the time gets closer, I am certain we will have more questions about CBHP. My non-techie kid’s jaw just dropped when the director showed him the 3D printer and when he heard from another non-techie kid that the programming isn’t impossible, I think he was sold. His scores are competitive for the program and he will have some lab research experience after this summer, so hopefully they will consider him when the time comes.</p>
<p>Collegefortwins: My son had little or no research experience, nor was he a tech kid. But, he’s a math/stat/social sciences guy. In the end, CBHP was great for him, because of the opportunities it brought.</p>
<p>“I stayed only briefly, and was actually unimpressed with the student”</p>
<p>Collegefortwins- Can you explain the above? It seems like a harsh judgement after “staying only briefly.” I know a lot of the parents on the board have kids who are Honors College Ambassadors. I don’t believe these kids receive any type of pay or compensation for this, and I for one really appreciate what they do.</p>
<p>I met with him only briefly at lunch, but then he accompanied us to the dorms, as well as back across campus for our next meeting, so we had plenty of opportunity to talk. I agree that I greatly appreciated what he was doing for us, however, I am not sure he was the best representative for the Honors college. He was a very nice, responsive, and polite young man, so I don’t mean that I was unimpressed in that way. But, he no longer lived on campus, and seemed very out-of-touch with what was happening on campus when I inquired about events I had seen advertised like Quidditch on the Quad (which was I believe, sponsored by the Honors College) and when I mentioned something about the Spring fb game that was happening on Saturday, he commented that he doubted he would come “all the way back to campus” for anything like that. Overall, I felt he just seemed detached from school events. He said he did not really do many events with the Honors college even as a freshman, as he was involved with another organization on campus, so he was not able to speak to social opportunities through the college. I appreciated his honesty, as well as his time, but I guess I thought that an ambassador would be more involved. OTOH, a female ambassador approached us in the waiting area before an appt, and she could not have been a better representative for the college. She made me feel MUCH better! :)</p>
<p>Sniner: You are correct. The Honors Ambassadors are not paid. They interview for their positions and must meet certain requirements to remain ambassadors. My son has been an ambassador for a few years, and he loves working with Allison and Susan.</p>
<p>That said, Collegefortwins, perhaps your ambassador was more familiar with other aspects of Alabama such as Greek life or research opportunities. Perhaps he had a job that kept him from participating in some things. If he had a heavy course load this semester involving research, he may have not had time to go to Saturday’s A Game. I did not know if my son would be able to make it to A Day, because he’s writing his thesis, applying for various jobs following graduation, and packing up his off-campus apartment. But, I did see photos of him at the game on Facebook, so I know he made it over.</p>
<p>This may be a matter of perspective. I think there is a huge difference in the way things may appear as a first time visitor with an entering freshman student, especially if its a first child going away, and the way those of us with older students see things. In addition to each student arriving on campus with a different set of interests and ideas, students change as they mature, establish a peer group, and define their particular interests on campus. I might have come to the same conclusion as the OP a few years ago. Having gained two years experience now, my perspective has changed. I’m betting my experience as the next two arrive on campus over the next year and two years my experience will be different even from our first experience.</p>
<p>Even while living on campus, my student did not find the HC to be a source of social interaction for her. She will complete her HC requirements, but has developed her social connections across many other areas. She remains connected to the HC and other HC students through mentoring and other academic activities, but doesn’t attend HC social events. Although she lives off campus she attends many athletic and other events on campus, but she has discovered what her interests are and focuses what little free time she has on enjoying those activities with her friends. She’s not disconnected, just more mature and defined than she was as an entering freshman.:)</p>